Chestnut Sunday is back (From Richmond and Twickenham Times)

Chestnut Sunday is back

5:20pm Sunday 26th April 2009 in

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The annual Chestnut Sunday celebrations in Bushy Park will take place on May 10 this year.

The tradition of celebrating the day when blooms on the trees lining Chestnut Avenue are at their best goes back more than 100 years and was revived by Hampton Wick residents Mu and Colin Pain in the 1970s after it stopped during WWII.

Chestnut Avenue will be shut from 12.15pm to 1.30pm for a parade from Teddington Gate to the Diana Fountain on May 10, the Sunday closest to when the blooms are at their best.

Military vehicles, Harley Davidson motorcycles, classic cars and the Horse Rangers Band will make their way there in a procession.

At the fountain, the Teddington School Big Band will perform and there will be a number of exhibitions and fairground stalls.

Ray Brodie, park manager at Bushy Park, said: “Chestnut Sunday is a very popular event and we hope everyone will have a great time watching the parade and enjoying a picnic while admiring the chestnut blooms.

“There will be something for everyone, with a Victorian merry-go-round and the Royal Parks’ Shire Horses on hand to meet and greet.”